She stood still as
stone, blinking once every hour when no one would notice. She had
enhanced her every feature to near perfection. Her straight black
hair was as still as her body. Her lips, painted a rich red
contrasted with her sickly white face. The gray gown she wore (which
seemed to be pulled straight down by an unseen force) tautly fit
around her skinny figure – obviously the result of a very
tight-fitting corset. Her hands were held out in front of her,
offering an invisible gift. Her long, slender fingers were hidden
beneath dull, white gloves. Her bare feet were barely visible
beneath the still dress, yet they were painted the same hue as her
face.

Her two blue eyes were
fixed on the clock of the church tower across the street. The minute
hand moved ever so slowly, tantalizing her poor soul. She believed
she'd reached perfection and felt the need to sustain it! While
her body remained still as stone – nay, still as a statue! – her
heart beat faster and faster.

People would come up
to her, stare at her for a brief moment, and walk away, mumbling
about their own business, and very rarely about the near perfection
of this Living Statue.

One little girl came
up to the Living Statue followed by her mother. "Is it real?"
the daughter asked.

"Yes, she is,"
assured the mother.

"She is so perfect."

The Living Statue had
not received such a kind comment, but managed to stifle her smile.
She'd been still for six hours straight and would not be
interrupted by a little girl.

"Come on, let's
go," the mother said. The daughter took her mother's hand and
walked down the street. The girl looked back, but the Statue did not
notice. She blinked for the first time in an hour. The girl had
seen it.

"She blinked!" the
little girl exclaimed.

And as the Statue
heard those words, she fell to the ground, not like a statue, but
like a human being. Her body had loosened and fell gracefully upon
the pavement. Her frozen features softened and her eyes closed.

The daughter ran to
the fallen Statue and lifted the gloved hand. The statue opened her
eyes. She took her gloves off to reveal flesh-colored hands.

"I'm not perfect,"
the Statue smiled.

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